Housing authority director says federal budget cuts to have drastic impact on residents

Two key programs that assist low-income Westmoreland County Housing Authority residents are on the chopping block as part of the Trump administration’s federal budget proposal awaiting congressional approval.

Housing Authority Executive Director Michael Washowich said the bill passed last month by the U.S. House, and awaiting a Senate vote, slashes as much as $33 billion allocated for low-income housing. That includes the targeted elimination of two specific programs to assist residents seeking home ownership and connecting others with needed social services.

The Family Self Sufficiency Program, which has helped more than 80 residents move out of subsidized housing and into private home ownership, is slated to be cut, Washowich said. The other targeted cut is the Hope in Life Program that offers residential assistance with homemaking, after-school care for children, health and wellness, parenting, substance abuse education and job placement services.

Family Self Sufficiency is funded through a $330,000 federal grant. Hope in Life is partially paid for with a three-year, $350,000 federal allocation.

“These contribute to our seniors and disabled residents,” Washowich said. “It makes no sense if these cuts go through. It will impact a lot of people, especially to the people we serve.”

Washowich said the authority also stands to lose an unspecified amount of federal funding through general cuts proposed in the GOP-backed budget bill. The housing authority operates on a $36 million annual budget and provides about 2,600 units for low-income, senior and disabled residents and administers another 1,000 rent-subsidy vouchers used to pay private landlords.

It received about $7.4 million federal operating funds. The final amount of potentially lost revenue as a result of federal budget cuts is still to be determined and could have a substantial impact on residents, officials said.

Washowich said the authority is in a position to weather some cuts, and alternative funding sources could be tapped to allow the agency to operate scaled-back social service programs. Additional operational expenses would have to be managed through other cost-cuttings that have yet to be identified.

“There’s a lot of anxiety and unknown right now. If we just relied on federal subsidies, it would have a more drastic impact, but we might be able to diversify and expend some of our affordable housing dollars through other programs,” Washowich said.